[[quoteright:300:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Shaman_King.jpg]]In the world of ''Shaman King'', special humans possessing spiritual power act as mediums between the worlds of the living and the dead. With enough talent and training, these humans can even channel a bonded soul to gain the powers and abilities it had in life, from legendary samurai to kung-fu masters.

Yoh Asakura is a BrilliantButLazy shaman who has bonded with [[OlderSidekick a samurai spirit named Amidamaru]]. Together with his best friend Manta Oyamada, an OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent with ''just'' enough power to see spirits, and his {{Tsundere}} "fiancée" Anna Kyouyama, Yoh dreams of becoming the Shaman King: TheChosenOne able to channel [[CrystalDragonJesus The Great Spirit]] and reshape the world however he or she sees fit. To do this, he must win the Shaman Fight, a once-in-a-lifetime competition that will decide just who is the most powerful and worthy shaman in the world.

This series [[ShownTheirWork shows a tremendous amount of research]] on the part of the author (Hiroyuki Takei, also author of ''Manga/ButsuZone''), since it features shamanistic concepts from many different cultures. Sadly, the manga was CutShort when its popularity faded. It's now gotten a completely redrawn re-release in Japan under the title of Shaman King Kang Zeng Bang[[note]]a pun on ''kanzenban'', "complete edition"[[/note]] in which the actual ending was released over two more volumes. A Western release of this edition has yet to be announced.

The manga ended after 300 chapters. There is a sequel called ''Manga/ShamanKingFlowers'', which is started [[http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2011-11-09/shaman-king-flowers-sequel-manga-to-launch-in-april April 2012]]. There's also the supplementary manga ''Shaman King 0'' which tells short stories of the characters before the main one, and ''Shaman King Remix Track'' short stories in the reprinted edition of humorous nature.

One of the many animes dubbed by [[Creator/FourKidsEntertainment 4Kids]]. The Spanish and Latin Americans also got a translation, and had the Japanese original dubbed in Spanish with only a bit of CulturalTranslation and pretty decent casts. Both the [=4Kids=] dub and a local language dub were shown in the Philippines, leading to inevitable comparisons and some confusion.

Not to be confused with the {{manhwa}} ''ShamanWarrior''.----!!Provides examples of:* AdultsAreUseless: Semi-inverted. An interesting case where the parents know ''exactly'' what's going on with their kids. They have decided to leave the fate of the world to their children, seeing how they have their limits and their children can still grow. Subverted with Faust, an adult who is a valuable asset to the team.* AerithAndBob: While there is a decent amount of this throughout the series, the X-Laws provide a great example. They consist of: Marco, Dingbat, Larch, Venstar, Porf and finally... Minnie and Kevin.* AffablyEvil: Hao/Zeke in the anime qualifies big time, smiling and acting cheery while doing extremely horrible things.** The key word here is "acting". It's rather hard to tell when he's switching between this and FauxAffablyEvil.** Probably also qualifies as a WellIntentionedExtremist, at least at one time in his life. See [[spoiler: his ultimate goal to create a shaman-only utopia in order to 'save' the world from humans who are either, in his mind, contributing to its annihilation through ignorance or though simply not doing anything to stop it or change.]]* AllThereInTheManual: Hao's past is explained in a side story of all things. Though it sort makes sense since, [[spoiler:nobody around but him knew about it]].* AlternativeForeignThemeSong: And it's good.* AMindIsATerribleThingToRead: This was part of Hao/Zeke's StartOfDarkness in the Anime. After saving some people from a rogue spirit, he read her minds, and saw that they considered him a freak that they only tolerated for his abilities, with one believing he would turn on them sooner or later, and another even plotting to find a way to steal his power. As you can imagine, this soured his attitude towards regular humans.* AntiVillain: It's an established rule of the series that truly evil people cannot see ghosts. Therefore, all 'evil' shamans are either [[WellIntentionedExtremist convinced they're doing the right thing]] or [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold not as bad as they seem]].* AnyoneCanDie: [[spoiler: Pretty much everyone dies at one point or another. Question is how long they ''stay'' dead.]]** [[spoiler: Basically if a character is named, they die. Then they get better. Most of them, that is.]]** [[spoiler:Unless they're needed to create a tragic backstory for a character readers have no reason to sympathize with yet. Then they stay dead.]]* ArcWelding: ''Shaman King 0'' shows that Sati Saigan from Gandara Team is really Sachi from Manga/ButsuZone.* ArmorPiercingSlap: Anna is infamous for this. Not even Hao is immune.* ArrangedMarriage: Yoh and Anna.* ArtEvolution: Two gradual, yet noticeable improvements in style. Compare the early chapters with middle chapters and then those with the chapters toward the end and the overall quality improves drastically.* AscendedFanboy: In the anime only, [[spoiler:Manta actually becomes a shaman.]]* TheAtoner: Ren and [[spoiler:Chocolove]].* AuthorAppeal: Allegedly, Anna was written as the kind of woman the author likes. Since she was a CanonImmigrant from a former manga by the same author, this shouldn't surprise us.* AwesomeButImpractical: Giant Oversouls, such as Yoh's [[{{BFS}} Spirit of Sword]] are extremely powerful. However, thanks to the size of the Oversoul, these kinds of techniques consume a lot of Furyoku and can only be used for a limited time.* BabiesEverAfter: Hana, the son of Yoh and Anna, is an example of this, as the author wrote ''Funbari no Uta'' after the NoEnding of ''Shaman King''.** Though this was hinted when [[spoiler: Yoh and Anna "slept together" the night before the start of the Shaman tournament and Yoh's ancestor Asakura Yohken asked Yoh if he had any children, causing Yoh to blush.]]** Also, at the very end of the manga, [[spoiler: Ren also has a son. He refuses to tell who the mother is, but the fact that the boy has silver hair and red eyes implies that it's probably Iron Maiden Jeanne.]] Plus, there's [[http://www.mangareader.net/819-35935-27/shaman-king-flowers/chapter-1.html this]]. It's not as much implied as it is outright stated.* BadassAdorable: Could apply to Matamune. Cat with a pipe [[http://images.wikia.com/shamanking/en/images/1/14/Matamune_2.jpg here]] and changes into a katana [[http://images.wikia.com/shamanking/en/images/7/7b/Ss.jpg here]]. You decide.** Most of our [[KidHero Kid Heroes]] are this, being cute and attractive teenagers with amazing shamanic powers.* BadassFamily: The Asakura Family. And the Tao family.* BadassNative: The ''entire'' Patch tribe. Also Horohoro, who is an Ainu from Hokkaido.* BerserkButton: The cruel and calm Faust goes berserk on Yoh when he calls Eliza, both his wife and spirit, a puppet.** MANTA!!** Speaking of Manta...yeah, don't hurt him or any of Yoh's other friends. Yoh will ''flip his shit.''* BestHerToBedHer: [[spoiler:Anna the Third, who came all the way to Tokyo to challenge Hana to battle and make him her fiance if he wins.]]* BewareTheNiceOnes: Hao. And Jeanne. And Yoh, really. ...Basically, if a character is smiling, friendly, and happy, they probably have enough power to annihilate a small country and a [[BerserkButton temper you really don't want to press]].* BigScrewedUpFamily: The Tao family, to the core. Also, the Asakura family, though to lesser extent.* BishonenLine: The Oversoul mechanic of Shaman fighting provides a weird example. When we're first introduced to the concept, we have a clear distinction between Yoh's vague, billowing Amidamaru O.S. (which is basically a giant ghost-ball clamping Yoh's sword in its teeth) and Silva's five animals in O.S. which form clearly defined, almost ''crystalline'', objects. Yoh's second Amidamaru O.S. resembles the samurai more (and has a more powerful shield), but everyone else around him is already forming well-defined solids. Yoh doesn't form a fully solidified O.S. until he gets to his third, Giant O.S.. In the manga, he even goes so far as to develop an ''Armor'' O.S., which, in addition to being less bulky and unwieldy than his Giant O.S., is dense, durable, and can dish out some serious damage.* BlackAndWhiteInsanity: The X-Laws are all this. Especially in the anime.* BladeOnAStick: Ren's WeaponOfChoice is a Chinese kwan-dao that he stores in segments in his suitcase when not fighting. How strong is it? In his first appearance, he used it (''just'' it, Over Souls were unknown at the time) to slice a ''car'' cleanly in two.* BlandNameProduct: The Patch aren't any real Native American tribe, and they live on Mesa Verdede, not to be confused with [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mesa_Verde_National_Park Mesa Verde]]. {{Lampshaded}} in that ''none'' of the {{Muggles}} have even heard of this "Patch" tribe.** Oh, it gets better than that. In the English dub and the video games based on them, Yoh and crew pass through the town of Duringo and the Redstone national park.** An example that's also a series in-joke: all the "Bone Shell" gas stations* BlatantLies: Whoever told Yoh that only good people can see spirits. The '''heroes'''' include (in order of appearance) a man who beats up kids for fun (Ryu), a murderer who (previous to that act) ''hates'' his father (Ren), a sociopath who kills anyone in his way painfully and tried to vivisect another protagonist (Faust), and a gang leader who is also a murderer (Joco). The [[BigBad BB]][[EvilGenius EG]] is a genocidal sociopath. It's not clear exactly what Hiroyuki Takei's definition of evil is.** The message is more that no one who can see spirits is beyond redemption. All of the listed people, [[spoiler: and the BigBad,]] manage to be redeemed by their abilities to see spirits or their contact with [[MessianicArchetype Yoh]].* BoringYetPractical: Radim's Oversoul, which is basically a LaserSword. Looks tame compared to most other Oversouls, but it has all his power concentrated in one place, which lets him smash through most other Oversouls and he has CharlesAtlasSuperpower so he doesn't need the benefits of Armor Oversouls.* {{Bowdlerise}}: In the American release of the manga, Ponchi's... gigantic weaponized testicles are censored. In one scene, where he basically immobilizes Manta by [[NauseaFuel wrapping him up with them]], it's edited to look like some sort of thick hairy Seran wrap coating, and references are made to Ponchi's ''tail'' instead. A much huger variant of the same attack is used later on in the story; there, it's referred to as a [[UnusualEuphemism "Ghost Bubble"]]. However, the editing in both senes is slight enough that anyone paying attention will figure out what's ''really'' going on.** That and in the anime, Jeanne's Iron Maiden is really just a sarcophagus filled with thorns, even in the subbed version.** Marion Fauna's guardian ghost 'Chuck' had his pistols edited (poorly at that)... into rattles.* BreakHisHeartToSaveHim: Non-romantic example - Yoh attempts this on Manta after his first fight against Faust [[spoiler: led to poor Manta being vivisected alive and Yoh losing the first round of the Shaman Fight]]. It doesn't work.* BrilliantButLazy: Inverted, as much as it can be. Yoh is Brilliant but Lazy, sure. However he wants to be the Shaman King (who essentially gains the powers of God), explicitly so he can relax and do nothing for the rest of his life. He essentially is willing to work his ass off so that he will eventually never have to do anything again.** [[spoiler: Except that's not his real reason.]]* BrokenAesop: The story appears to have tried to argue for a balance between humans and nature and the innate goodness and worth in all living things despite their flaws, but breaks away from this rather quickly by having shamans make frequently hypocritical GreenAesop statements and by constantly reminding readers about how useless {{Muggles}} are in the context of the story (by depicting all of them at best as too powerless to even help themselves and at worst as callous, greedy, self-centered, corrupt, or downright evil people).* BruceLeeClone: Lee Bailong.* CainAndAbel: Yoh and Hao.* CameBackStrong: Dying is just about the only way to increase ones spirit power so repeatedly by most fighters.* CantCatchUp: Subverted, as all the main characters were shown to be at a similar skill level, having each received an upgrade either at the same time as Yoh or independently off screen before their next appearance.** Still played straight in some part though, as Ren still always finds reasons to worry about not being as strong as Yoh, especially when it becomes all about willpower.** Played straight when large segments of the latter portions of the series are all about people trying and failing to catch up to Hao.* CaptainObvious: Manta.* CatchPhrase: Several.** For Hao, "So Small" or its equivalent (translations vary.)** For Yoh, "It'll all work out."*** "People who can see spirits are never bad"* CerebusSyndrome: Initially a SliceOfLife ghost story, the show changed with the arrival of Tao Ren to become a [[MonsterOfTheWeek Shaman of the Week]] story, then changed again into a TournamentArc which started the tone shifts towards DarkerAndEdgier with the possibility that AnyoneCanDie, with both antagonists and protagonists being given more backstory and exploration.* CrossoverCosmology: The spirits shamans use go from Japanese nature spirits to English fairies to Mesopotamian gods and even Angels.* CulturalCrossReference: Yes, Virginia, those two spirits ''are'' supposed to look like [[WesternAnimation/TheRenAndStimpyShow Ren and Stimpy]].* CuteIsEvil: Iron Maiden is more LawfulStupid, but still...** For a straight example, Opacho, who appears to be Hao's [[TheDragon Dragon]] for most of the series.* CycleOfRevenge: Yoh mentioned this to Redseb when [[spoiler: he killed Chocolove for murdering their father.]]** Also Ren mentioned it to [[spoiler: Nichrom during their fight in the 7th Plant.]].* DeaderThanDead: Hao claims multiple times throughout the series that his Spirit of Fire can incinerate one's soul, causing them to be truly dead forever. [[spoiler:However we find out that isn't the case at all when we see all of those souls he allegedly killed, plus many more, at the very end of the series.]]* DeadlyDoctor: Faust.* DeathIsCheap: By the end of the manga at least four characters (Jeanne, Sati, Faust and Jun) can revive the dead, which comes in pretty handy. At one point, someone points out that [[spoiler: Ren has died 3 times]]. Also see Anyone Can Die.* DefeatMeansFriendship, several times. Though each case of it takes multiple losses.** Except Lyserg.** Inverted with Faust VIII. He defeated Yoh, then Yoh and Anna earned ''his'' friendship.* DesignatedGirlFight: The Hana-gumi (Team Flower) is pretty guilty of this, as they fight Anna, Tamao, and Tao Jun at the same time (though, all spirits involved are male), and later on they fight Magical Princess, though in a bit of a subversion the other team consists of ''much'' older witches.* DidWeJustHaveTeawithCthulhu?: It gets more hilarious and awkward when Yoh has a bath and even sleeps with Cthulu. No, Cthulu is not Anna but [[spoiler:Hao]]* {{Dismotivation}}: Yoh wants wants to win the shaman fight and [[AGodAmI become God]] so that he can have an easy life.** I don't know. It's pretty sound reasoning.* DisposableWoman: "Damuko", Horohoro's first love, also known as [[spoiler:Kororo]].* DoingInTheWizard: [[spoiler:"All-natural" Patch handicrafts are in fact modeled on the alien technology given to them by one of The Greys. The Ancient Astronauts trope is also confirmed for all the standard conspiracy theories like dogu statues and pyramids]].* DoItYourselfThemeTune: Creator/MegumiHayashibara (Anna's VA) sings the opening and ending themes.* DoubleStandardAbuseFemaleOnMale: If Yoh treated Anna the way she treated him and his friends it wouldn't be "training", it would be treated as physical and emotional abuse.* EgocentricTeamNaming: Ren's team is Team 'The Ren'.* EmbarrassingOldPhoto: In ''Shaman King Remix'', Anna reveals that she has about 1080 embarrasing old photos of Yoh that she uses for "psychological training". Side commentaries wonder if this's the reason for Yoh's DissonantSerenity.* EmotionlessGirl: Seyram Munzer, [[spoiler: At the end of the series, where she has an angry charge at Hao, and afterward gained her emotions back (although in her last appearance, she isn't showing much emotion).]]* EnemyWithout[=/=]EvilTwin: In this case, [[spoiler:the evil Hao split his soul in two as he reincarnated, causing him to be reborn as a good twin and an evil twin. By design, the evil half had the lion's share of power.]]* EnlightenmentSuperpowers: Every shaman.* EvenBadMenLoveTheirMamas: Hao to his mother. [[spoiler: Anna may be the reincarnation of Hao's mother, as she looks a lot like his mother, explaining why he likes her so much.]]** [[spoiler: Anna also ''slaps'' like his mother, apparently.]]* EveryoneIsBi: The interactions between many characters gives off this vibe.* EvilMakeover: Well, sort of, when [[spoiler:Lyserg]] joins the X-Laws, though it's actually a uniform. (And they're [[WellIntentionedExtremist Well Intentioned Extremists]] anyway.)* EvolutionaryLevels: The spirits themselves are said to be subject to a form of this. Human spirits that last long enough with decaying into monstrous forms become Nature spirits (assuming they don't start at this level), which may go on to become oni or gods.* {{Expy}}: As mentioned previously, Anna is a character in both ''Manga/ButsuZone'' and ''Shaman King'', though people are more liable to remember her for her appearance in Shaman King.* FaceDeathWithDignity: [[spoiler: both Silva and Kalim did this while fighting against the heroes.]]* FaceHeelTurn: Lyserg. He gets better.* FamousLastWords: ** [[spoiler: Faust's last words were to his dead wife.]]** [[spoiler: "Elisa, my love... I can be with you."]]* FunnyBackgroundEvent: During the two-volume flashback to Yoh's past, we repeatedly see a number of kids playing with tops very... [[SeriousBusiness enthusiastically]]. The between-chapters character profiles explain who these kids are: they sound ''very'' much like they'd belong in a MerchandiseDriven SeriousBusiness anime [[Anime/{{Beyblade}} about tops]].* GainaxEnding: [[spoiler: Within five chapters from the very end. Hao wakes up as Shaman King. Everyone dies. THEN the final battle starts, but is cut short by the power of love with a dash of Theatre/OedipusRex. Then everyone gets better and has kids. You walk away feeling it is Evangelion with a happy ending.]]* GeckoEnding: A tad more action-oriented than the manga, basically boiling down to [[spoiler:Yoh and Hao clashing. Hao nearly overpowers Yoh until the other Shamans pull a GondorCallsForAid and donate their powers to Yoh, effectively putting him on par with Hao until he eventually cuts him down (leading into a bit of FridgeLogic as it's been shown killing him hardly solves anything). The tourney is put on hiatus for a few months as the characters go about their lives... and then it promptly starts again]].* GettingCrapPastTheRadar Lyserg(ic) (Acid) Diethyl(amide)** And his spirit, Morphine, though that's far more blatant.*** That one got changed in the VIZ translation to Morphea. But that's almost certainly meant to make it sound more like a name, as the VIZ translation has not shied away from references to morphine (up to and including showing Faust VIII ''[[RefugeInAudacity drinking it with a bendy straw]]'').** There's also a character called Peyote.*** In the original artwork, a lot of Yoh's outfits have the symbol of a Marijuana Leaf. Probably to enforce his hippy nature. These were often censored in the Viz release.** In the English dub, Horohoro says to Yoh "After you bite the dust, buddy, naybe you could become the tournament mascot. Maybe a kangaroo or ''a jackass''." To which Yoh responds with "It's a good thing you and I are friends or I would've take offense to that last comment." Considering that it's a 4Kids dub, it's surprising they were able to get away with that.** The dub also threw in a little tidbit for older viewers during a scene wherein Chocolove puts Ren in a dress. Ren says "Like I used to tell June, I do '''not''' wear girls' clothes!" A reference to all his bare midriffs and revealing clothing, maybe?** The manga's DistantFinale isn't shy of showing the heroes we love and respect ''all boozed out''. Yes, this includes Lyserg and freaking Manta.** And let's not forget the subtle hints about [[spoiler: Yoh and Anna having TheirFirstTime. Talking outside their BigFancyHouse in yukatas? Okay. Being the only ones in said house, with not even Amidamaru around? Ho hum. Anna later asking Yoh if they can sleep in the same room that night, with Yoh calmly saying yes? Oooooh. Fans tracing their son Hana's age and conception and finding out that Anna ''[[PregnantBadass was in the earliest pregnancy stages]]'' during the second half of the manga? W O W.]]* GetAHoldOfYourselfMan: At one point, Mikihisa Asakura slaps the three witches of Team Hana-Gumi in the process of trying to get them to calm down. Matilda, of course, cries out "Even my own parents never hit me!"** Yoh also punches Horohoro while travelling to North America (while the two are falling from a plane) as well as Lyserg the first time they meet.* [[spoiler:GodIsEvil: As if Hao just being Shaman King wasn't enough to invoke this trope, after he decides not to wipe out the human race he decides to pass the time by messing with Hana. First order of business? Get him an Anna-clone for a fiancee.]]* {{Golem}}: Emeth. Originally a traditional golem built out of clay, he was modified and given many mechanical components and the ability to transform into various shapes.* GratuitousEnglish: Being the American of the group, it's a given that Chocolove would do this. [[SurprisinglyGoodEnglish It's actually pretty good]], and [[Creator/MotokoKumai Motoko Kumai's]] delivery makes it sound oddly adorable.* GratuitousSpanish: Peyote, who keeps saying "¡Eres Correcto!". This literally translates to "You are correct!", but in Spanish the expression would imply an overly attachment to correctness, or following rules. The correct expression would be "¡Estás en lo correcto!" (You're on the right assumption) or "¡Es correcto!" (That's correct).* GroinAttack: Played straight, inverted, and played straight again with Ponchi, a tanuki spirit who, in one chapter, kicks Wooden Sword Ryu in the groin, attacks Manta ''with'' his groin, and then has his groin crushed by Anna.** Also played straight in the manga when Anna kicks Hao before he reveals his armor O.S. Kurobina.** And lest we forget that Ponchi, as a tanuki, has another literal groin attack, which is basically him using his gigantic weaponized testicles (in line with classic tanuki lore). [[spoiler:When he reveals this move and tries it against Team Hana-Gumi, the three witches GroinAttack him right back. One gets ''blown to pieces with a revolver'', and the other is ''severed'']]* HandicappedBadass: Technically, Chocolove is blind, yet he has the highest Furyoku out of the five warriors.** [[spoiler:Faust VIII is crippled after his fight with Yoh due to giving his legs to his dead wife's skeleton. When he needs to get out of his wheelchair, he uses his dog's skeleton to make Over Soul legs.]]* HauntedHeadquarters: Yoh and Anna's home. Of course, being a (lazy) shaman and a iron-fisted [[{{Miko}} itako]], that tiny detail can't bother them.* HairReboot: ''Violently'' subverted by Ryu, whose gigantic {{delinquent}} pompadour is [[CloseCallHaircut cut]] very early into the story. His hair spends about 3/4 of the story re-growing, getting damaged and being rearranged in increasingly bizarre shapes before finally regaining its original form in sort of reverse-ImportantHaircut moment.* HealItWithBooze: Horohoro uses sake as a disinfectant after tangling with a bear in Colorado.* TheHeartless: Oni are little spirit monsters born of the negative emotions of those with furyoku. While alone they're small and weak, if you summon enough they may undergo a FusionDance into an EldritchAbomination (in the style of TheWormThatWalks, and often it results in an AttackOfTheFiftyFootWhatever). [[spoiler: In Anna's past, she ended up summoning an Oh-Oni (King Oni) that Yoh helped her put down. While this is the most powerful kind of Oni in the main Shaman King storyline, there's to be an even more powerful Dark Oni, which Hana summoned in Shaman King Flowers. The Dark Oni appears to have a prototype in the Daitaro-Boshi, a giant oni -- which was ''not'' InvisibleToNormals -- born from an Onmyouji using a HumanSacrifice to fuse hundreds of oni; this happened in Hao's long, long ago past]].* HeroLookingForGroup: Somewhat played with. Since the beginning, Ryu has been in desperate search to find his "Best Place", somewhere where he belongs, though his idea of the best place has been more physical, such as a building or a home. But he finds his "Best Place" where [[CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming the rest of his friends are]].** Also Lyserg at first, he claimed to be "searching for allies".* HeelFaceTurn: A lot of characters throughout the series. Noteworthy examples are Ren, Jun, Faust VIII, most of the X-Laws, and Lyserg, after his FaceHeelTurn.* HeroWorshipper: Manta.* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler: All of the X-Laws but Jeanne, Marco, and Lyserg, in the anime.]]** SenselessSacrifice: [[spoiler: After the Babylon Gate incident, the remaining X-Laws throw themselves at Hao/Zeke in order for their comrades to discover the medium he uses to channel the Spirit of Fire. After three of them die, Hao/Zeke flat-out tells the survivors that his medium is air, shocking everybody, and rendering the sacrifice of their comrades utterly pointless.]]* HiddenDepths: Can be applied to many but Yoh could be the best example regardless of how talkative he is. When Hao blackmails him, Amidamaru tells Yoh that he has been trying to stay strong.* HitodamaLight: Shamans travel with at least one spirit, who is usually in the form of a wandering ball of fire. They can also force their ghost-pals into weapons, empowering them with their spirit ally, and wreathing the weapons in the flame. In this case, the hitodama have faces, mouths, and usually part of the original spirit's clothes/hair. The stronger the connection, the more of the original spirit can be seen. * HotSpringsEpisode: Once in the anime, and several chapters in the manga.* HypocriticalHumor: When Yoh and company have to fight against Dracula, they complain that Dracula's a fictional character, apparently ignoring that Yoh had already gone up against a descendent of Literature/{{Faust}}.* IAmNotLeftHanded* IHaveYouNowMyPretty: Hao tries this on Anna when they meet. She slaps him away promptly. He likes it.* IWasJustPassingThrough: Inverted and overlapping with EmbarrassingRescue. In the anime, our heroes save their " enemy" in this fashion. Hao is pissed with the X-Laws for meddling with Yoh and decides to have his minions teach them a lesson. However, Yoh and the others can't stand to watch the slaughtering and decide to step in.--->'''Horohoro:''' Whoa, don't get the wrong idea here.\\'''Joco:''' It's not like we came to save you guys.\\'''Ren:''' It's just how things turned out.\\'''Marco:''' If I'm at the mercy of my enemies, then I'd rather choose a noble death!\\'''Ren:''' Do whatever you like. But if you want to die, do it somewhere we can't see you.** In true {{Determinator}} and UngratefulBastard form, the [[spoiler: remaining]] X-Laws respond to their rescue by continuing with their plans [[spoiler: resulting in their saviours being sucked into the Gate of Babylon]].* IllGirl: Eliza.* ImprobableWeaponUser: Just on the good guy's team, we have Horohoro, who wields a snowboard, "Wooden Sword" Ryu, who wields a [[CaptainObvious wooden sword]], and Lyserg, who uses a divining pendulum and wire. However, the mechanics of the Over Soul means that any item can be a sufficiently deadly weapon, so long as it has some connection to the spirit.* {{Ineffectual Loner}}s: The entirety of the X-Laws [[spoiler: were not only {{Determinator}}s, but killed indiscriminately to try and stop Hao. In the end, their efforts amount to getting annihilated by Hao and making him powerful enough to become a god.]]* InvisibleToNormals: One of the rules of the series is, if you can see spirits, there's got to be at least ''some'' good in you. This little moral litmus test is quickly turned on its head, as Hao intends to wipe all the normals out of existence.* KarmaHoudini: Faust VIII never really gets so much as yelled at for 1) slaughtering his first opponent and 2) doing... what he did to poor Manta. On the other hand, in the anime he ''does'' show genuine care for human life during the Shaman Tournament, [[spoiler: and practically brings Len back from the dead during the final fight]], which means he'd redeemed himself. In the manga, he ends up [[spoiler:sacrificing himself so that the Five Warriors can continue trying to catch up to Hao, his death doesn't mean that much though as he just hangs around as a ghost.]]** Then there's Hao himself. [[spoiler: He wins the tournament without even trying, despite the heroes' best efforts. He then becomes Shaman King and is even allowed to keep the title despite all the evil deeds he's done, which includes killing likely thousands of people. He only gets off with a slap from his mother and a bit of embarrassment due to this.]] Though he seems to get his 'just desserts' in the anime.* KatanasAreJustBetter: Averted for the most part. Despite wielding a legendary katana, and being possessed by the spirit of that katana's owner, Yoh doesn't do much that's too crazy with Harusame until he starts using it for an Over Soul.* KidDetective: Lyserg.* KidHero: Most of the main cast are this. Yoh. Ren. Horohoro. Chocolove. Lyserg...* KickTheDog: Pretty much everyone on Hao's side slaughtered or tried to slaughter innocent bystanders and children, or otherwise enjoyed brutally inflicting pain, especially in the manga. Tao Ren also had a few of those moments before his HeelFaceTurn. Ren's father deserves a mention for accidentally crushing the head of his pet (zombie) panda in his hand for no good reason. Iron Maiden Jeanne hastily executed any opposition using torture devices, though at least she [[IDidWhatIHadToDo didn't exactly look happy about that]]. Tokagero was a real meanie before being defeated too.* KillSat: In the manga, three of the X-Laws make a last-ditch attempt to kill [[spoiler:Hao]] by shooting him with a satellite. [[spoiler:It doesn't scratch him,]] of course.* KnightOfCerebus: Tao Ren, whose arrival changed the tone of the story from SliceOfLife to a MonsterOfTheWeek TournamentArc.* KnightTemplar: The X-Laws, to the core.* KungFuJesus: It's never outright ''stated'', but is heavily implied that Jesus was the winner of his generation's Shaman Fight. Which is ''great''.** Don't forget Buddha!* LampshadeHanging: The anime has a lot of fun with this.** Ren has some very ExpressiveHair and in one scene this is pointed out by Bason when Ren is angered.--->'''Bason:''' Ooh! Young Master's spiky hair has stiffened!** [[spoiler: When it is revealed that Hao is Yoh's twin brother]]. In a dramatic shot, we see an uncharacteristically solemn-looking Yoh seemingly deep in contemplation after this revelation until he breaks the tension with a [[VisibleSigh sigh]] and a smile...--->'''Yoh:''' [[spoiler: It's no use. Even though you just said we're twins]], it still hasn't sunk in.\\'''Horohoro:''' Weren't you just full of anxiety and couldn't talk?! God, you're so confusing!** The Niles, a team of Egyptian shamans, are explaining their origins...--->'''Ryu:''' I-Is he serious?\\'''Anatel:''' I explained all the details at [[BreakingTheFourthWall the press conference for this episode]].\\[Cue [[FaceFault Facefaults]]]* LawyerFriendlyCameo: Team LCT/Team Insane Asylum* LawfulStupid: The X-LAWS are all this. A group that vows to wipe out Hao and his allies. Okay, the only problem is that if you are not on their side you're automatically considered an enemy. [[HolierThanThou They refuse to work with others outside their group and tend to look down on anyone not in their team (mostly Marco carries this attitude).]] [[{{Hypocrite}} X-LAWS says they do this to rid evil from the world and stop the killing.]] It is not as bad in the manga, but in the anime they take it to the extreme. [[SarcasmMode Way to go of ruining your chances helping other people stop the Big Bad.]]** Yoh even calls them out on this--->"If you kill people just for standing in your way, then you're no better than Hao."\\

* LicensedGame: There are two for GameBoyAdvance, called ''Shaman King Master Of Spirits'' and ''Shaman King Master Of Spirits 2''.* LightIsNotGood: Once again it's the X-Laws.* LighterAndSofter: The anime '''heavily''' censors the manga. Some choice examples:** Ryu's spirit, Tokagero, has a really disturbing background. [[spoiler: His mother died of starvation, and he had to cannibalize her in order to survive.]]** Anna and Yoh's [[spoiler:night together. Anna gives Yoh a little parting gift before he heads to America. Seeing as how they were both 15, it's no wonder it got cut; but since there was a very good chance Yoh would die, Anna wanted to make sure a child lived on]].** The X-Laws are vicious bastards in the manga, they don't even flinch when [[spoiler: their leader, Iron Maiden Jeanne, tortuously kills people or when Hao kills one of their own in even more gruesome detail.]]** Ren murdering Chrome was not shown in the anime, but shown completely in the manga (both the result when it happened and again showing the whole scene later on).** Chocolove's past from the manga is both incredibly offensive, and utterly tragic. [[spoiler: His parents were killed on Christmas Day, turning him into a vicious killer, and leader of the gang, Shaft. He murders people in cold blood, but has his life turned around by a man named Orona.]] Those who watched the anime know [[spoiler: Orona died]], but in the manga [[spoiler: he didn't die of old age -- he was murdered by Chocolove's gang.]]* LikeCanNotCutLike: Over Soul enfused weapons, [[AvertedTrope unless]] broken quickly.* LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters: Not as many as some other manga. But enough to make you go "Oh yeah... That guy who hasn't done anything for like 30 chapters". Manta is probably the biggest offender. There are big chunks of the series where nobody reading knows where he is or why they should care. And than all of sudden, there he is. It's like the story kinda left him behind. The series also had a reeeally bad tendency to introduce tons of characters out of nowhere and make them disapear just as fast.* {{Lolicon}}: Ryu has quite a fascination with girls far younger than him, and even Horohoro's spirit. [[{{Shotacon}} And Lyserg]].* LoveAtFirstPunch: The first thing Anna said to Yoh when they first met, was that he was blocking her way and should go die.* LoveMakesYouEvil: ** Faust. [[spoiler: He became nuts after his ex-IllGirl wife Eliza was shot to death ''[[DiabolusExMachina a few months after he found the cure to her illness]]''.]]** [[spoiler: Hao. In a side story, it is revealed his mother was a shaman and was killed by a fake medium in order to cover up his scams after framing her as a demon. Once Hao finds out he isn't a half-demon, but a normal human with a gift for shamanism he decides that it's time for vengeance.]]* MagicalComputer: Manta's laptop becomes a literal example after Mosuke decides to move in.* TheMasochismTango: Yoh and Anna's relationship.* MoreTeethThanTheOsmondFamily: [[http://www.citymanga.com/files/images/shaman_king/171/17-18.jpg Oni]] especailly the [[http://www.citymanga.com/files/images/shaman_king/176/10.jpg Oh-Oni]]* MoreThanMindControl: When [[spoiler: Lyserg switches sides to the X-Laws]], and also Hao's ability to persuade just about anyone to join his side.* MechanicalMonster: Many of the shaman spirits.* TheMedic: Faust VIII is a quite dark version of this trope.* MeteorMove: The first time we see Li Bailong fight, we get a very nicely executed Type A.* {{Necromantic}}: ** Faust VIII.** Jun and Bailong are quite the example as well.* NietzscheWannabe: Hao.* NinjaPirateZombieRobot: Faust VIII. He's a Mad German Doctor Necromancer. And he does this beautifully.* NoEnding: Originally, the manga was canceled near the lead up to the climax. However, the updated re-release features the ending in two entirely new volumes.* NoCelebritiesWereHarmed: [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w_rmvcmVmqg Matt Hardy, Edge, and Bubba Ray Dudley]] are shamans in the tournament; of course their mediums are tables, ladders, and chairs, oh my.** Chapter 79 also features a shaman who looks suspiciously like Hitler.** In the stands at one of the tournament battles, one can see a rather shocked looking Michael Jackson.* NoSuchThingAsWizardJesus: Averted. The manga lists Jesus, Muhammad, and Gautama Buddha as previous holders of the title "Shaman King". However, given that the Shaman King is actually a spirit-medium who communes directly with God, he's far from being "just" a wizard.* NobleSavage: Subverted with the Native American Patch tribe, who have "traditional native hand-crafted" versions of high-tech consumer electronics and are shamelessly merchandising the Shaman Fight for money.** The "hand-crafted" part [[spoiler:is probably true, as implied in the last chapter]].* [[OddlyNamedSequel Oddly Named Updated Re-release]]: ''Shaman King Kang Zeng Bang''.** [[BilingualBonus Not all that odd if you know Japanese:]] "Kang Zeng Bang" comes out as "kanzenban", or "Perfect Edition".* OffhandBackhand: During the fight with Boris Tepes {{Dracula}}, Boris zips behind "Wooden Sword" Ryu, boasting that he has no time to dodge or use his sword; so Ryu simply pops him one with his fist, without turning around.* OffModel: Happened occasionally in the very early chapters. Yoh had huge feet and hands, (and a long bang of hair that disappeared after like 3 volumes), Ren's hair was very jagged then he goes away for awhile and when he comes back into the series his hair is much more rounded and smooth. Manta had tiny feet, Anna had a big forehead, etc. Also, compare the diagram of Shaman Fight contestants in Chapter 78 with the updated version of the same people in Chapter 208 and see the incredible difference.** An example that was induced by the [[{{Bowdlerise}} Bowdlerisation]] of the English manga: To avoid accusations of racism, they readjusted Chocolove's face so he didn't have big lips anymore. Sounds fair, but when you see the edited manga, you'll notice how ''weird'' his face looks without them. His face just ends up stretching and contorting in ways that range from odd to downright disgusting.** The anime occasionally had this too, but not much worse than the manga. Plus, this was animation during the the 2000s, so it's kind of expected.* OffscreenMomentOfAwesome: The collection of all the Primal Elemental spirits, but the biggest example would be Sati's fight with the King of Hell for the Earth spirit.* OneHitKill: The Legendary Left.* OneMythToExplainThemAll: All prophets/chosen people in different cultures as being Shaman Kings from previous tournaments, although they only imply that with the most known ones, Jesus and Buddha. Some spirits used by shamans seem to be portrayed as Gods, too, like Shamash, and the Sphynx. * OppositesAttract: Just look at the calm, easy-going Yoh and the short-tempered, intimidating Anna.* OurVampiresAreDifferent: Played totally straight by Boris Tepes Dracula. Sort of. [[spoiler:He turns out to not be a vampire in the end there.]]* OvertookTheManga: Although the GeckoEnding was probably slightly more satisfying than the NoEnding. See above.* TheOnlyOneAllowedToDefeatYou* {{Onmyodo}}* PerfectlyArrangedMarriage: Yoh and Anna, to everyone's surprise. Especially their own.* PerpetualFrowner: Tao Ren.* PhenotypeStereotype: Faust, a German, has blonde hair and blue eyes, as well as significantly paler skin than the rest of the cast.** Though somewhat subverted by the important American shamans of the cast, who are all either Native American or African-American.* PillarOfLight* PluckyComicRelief: Chocolove, who is different from most examples in that he's actually funny ''and'' useful in battle.* PowerFist: In the manga at least, Lee Bailong gets a mechanized installment that can propel his fist forward with the explosion of a gunpowder canister. Helps that he is a physical zombie as opposed to the spirits used by the rest of the Shamans.* PowersViaPossession* ThePowerOfFriendship* ThePowerOfLove* PrettyFreeloader: Anna, for some. Though considering how she's the one who comes up with the TrainingFromHell menus ''and'' Yoh does become stronger from them, she seems to consider said menus as payment.* PsychologicalTormentZone* TheRez: The Patch tribe.* RousseauWasRight: Yoh believes that anyone who can see spirits is ultimately a good person who is, at worst, misguided.* ScaryShinyGlasses: Marco from the X-Laws.* SceneryCensor: Takei chooses a weird way to evoke this -- he uses a ''star'' to cover Hao's private parts when he's in a hot spring.** Other examples include their spirit partners and other characters' heads.* ShaggyDogStory: [[spoiler: None of the heroes win the tourney nor stop Hao from obtaining the Shaman King title. The most victory they get is, at the least, convincing him to not to destroy humanity. For now.]]** [[spoiler: They don't even really convince him not to destroy humanity, really. It's implied by the main characters in the last chapter that Hao in fact brought them all back to life to prove that he was right. To elaborate, at the end of the final battle in the manga, Hao basically tells them all that since they're ''so'' convinced of the good in people, he'll revive them so they can try and "fix" everything. Cue the last chapter, 5 years into the future where our heroes admit that they learned pretty quickly that they couldn't change the world, and Hao probably knew this when he sent them back. No, they didn't convince him not to destroy humanity, Hao just decided it'd be more amusing to rub the fact that he was right in their faces.]]*** [[spoiler: Actually he did say he'd let humans have a chance to solve their own problems even though he does still hate them. For now at least they aren't going to be killed]]*** [[spoiler:In the manga's last pages we see Hao visiting the world once again and he smiles upon seeing a cat. Considering he did not destroy humanity it looks like things look better for him... or maybe he just understood his mother's feeling.]]*** The anime mostly avoids this, though the title of Shaman King is [[spoiler: not granted to anyone do to the last episode showing only that the tournament is starting up again.]]** Faust's backstory is definitely this. Faust studies all his life to become a doctor, barely having any time for a social life until he meets the one girl who befriends him and falls in love at first sight. The problem is, she has an incurable disease. Faust works his ass off for 20 years and then... SHE'S CURED! But on the first night in their new home she's killed by a burglar.* SortingAlgorithmOfEvil: In the anime, especially, to the point of frustration. (How did THAT many Shamans end up with Giant Over Soul? It was supposed to be rare!)** Considering the tournament (and in fact most tournaments in anything) is essentially a Sorting Algorithm of Power, not quite surprising.* SociopathicHero: The X-Laws.* SpaceAlien: The last Plant guardian looks like this, [[AvertedTrope but not]]. [[spoiler:And like Ryu said, [[SamusIsAGirl she]]'s a [[{{Moe}} cutie]].]]* SpiritAdvisor: Amidamaru to Yoh.* StoryBreakerPower: Aside from Hao in general, its implied that Yoh's Mu-Mu-Myou-Yaku-Mu is this. Being a purification technique, it is essentialy a OneHitKill against any kind of Oversoul, all while carrying the efficiency of Armor Oversouls. Aside from being a unique technique according to the cast, it is proven to be so powerful that Yoh manage to defeat [[spoiler:the power that has defeated Hao in the past, and win]], and stand against Ren's whole team alone, all of them with their own Armor Oversoul. * ThemeMusicPowerUp: Any time [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=miRjTbibrWk Brave Heart]] plays, you will receive plot exposition/explanation of sudden understanding, and complete and utter defeat of all opponents. It's subverted a few times, but generally played straight.** Horribly averted in episode 62 with "Silent Weapon". You keep expecting that at some point Yoh [[spoiler: takes down Hao]] but it gets worse.* ThemeNaming: The Patch tribe members are all named after elements of the periodic table: Silva (Silver), Goldva (Gold), Kalim (Kalium, another name for Potassium), Rutherfor (Rutherfordium), and so on.** The Gandhara are all named after supermarket chains in Japan, the X-Laws and Team Kabbalahers are partially named after tobacco brands. Team Iceman members are partially named ice cream brands while Team Niles has members named after Pocky, Pretz, and Picola and famous Egyptian historical figures.* TheyreCalledPersonalIssuesForAReason: Nearly the entire cast have some form of horrendous past and most will expound on theirs at some point. Notable exceptions, however, would be Hao, Anna, and Yoh himself. Their backstories only come to light in personal flashbacks and explanations by other characters.* ThoseTwoGuys: More like [=Those Nine Guys=], or rather, the guys that make up Ryu's gang. Though one of them, Muscle Punch, does get a few lines.** Also, in the anime, Zen and Ryo.* TheBadGuyWins: ** [[spoiler: Downplayed in the manga. While they fail to stop Hao from obtaining the Great Spirit, they do persuade him to abandon his "kill all humans" plan.]]** [[spoiler: Averted in the anime, when Yoh defeats Hao outright.]] * TinyGuyHugeGirl: Manta's parents, Oyamada Mansumi and Keiko.* TogetherInDeath: [[spoiler:Faust VIII and Eliza, in the manga.]]* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: Anna and Tamao are an interesting reversal. Anna is the more feminine-looking of the two and is much more aggressive, while Tamao is shyer and more feminine in personality, but could easily be mistaken for a boy at first glance.* TokyoIsTheCenterOfTheUniverse: Subverted. Although Tokyo is the meeting point for all the Shamans in the preliminary round, the actual tournament will take place at the Patch tribe in America. Also the location of the Preliminaries changes every tournament.* TookALevelInBadass: Manta [[spoiler: after becoming a Shaman.]]** [[spoiler: Tamao, during the DistantFinale, is Anna-level scary.]]* TragicKeepsake: Turns out the necklace Yoh always wears [[spoiler:was the medium in which Matamune materialized himself in the world. After using up all his Furyoku to help Yoh save Anna when they were younger, he turned back into a soul and was for all intents and purposes dead.]]* TrainingFromHell: Usually provided by Anna.** In the manga, it's taken to a ''literal'' extreme, though not at Anna's hands.* {{Tsundere}}: Anna, to the core.* UhOhEyes: A subtle example. Whenever either Yoh or Hao are aggravated, their irises lose all color for whatever reason. It's never explained and seems to largely be an artistic quirk.* UncleTomfoolery: Chocolove.* UnderstandingBoyfriend: Yoh's father Mikihisa was the first and only guy who didn't dump his mother Keiko upon learning that she could see spirits. In fact, they met when she was crying over the last JerkAss and he comforted her.* UnluckyChildhoodFriend: Tamao. Even though she likes Yoh, the chances of her getting together with him are close to none, as Yoh is engaged to Anna (and doesn't mind the fact either).** "Close to none"? Yoh apparently [[spoiler:fell in love with Anna at first sight, despite the fact that she told him to die for blocking her path when they met.]] * UnstoppableRage: ''Subverted'', shockingly. See, when [[spoiler:Yoh and Faust VIII fight, Yoh gets really uncharacteristically enraged at Faust for trying to torture Manta. Said not only doesn't make him stronger, it makes him exhaust his spiritual energy much faster.]] Yoh learns from this, and puts it to use during his qualifying fight with Ren, who is stronger than him but much easier to provoke. Before long, Ren can't even tell when his hits are landing anymore.** This trope is {{Deconstructed}} especially in later fights. If you lose your cool, 9 times out of 10 you WILL LOSE your fight.* VegetaAndKakarot: Tao Ren and Asakura Yoh.** Zenki and Goki are a literal pair of RedOniBlueOni.* VillainousBreakdown: Though she isn't a villain, [[spoiler: Goldva started laughing insanely and raving about the new Shaman King Hao]].** Hao also experiences this in the anime, when Yoh breaks free. He becomes a lot less cheery and a lot... crazier. He is pushed even farther over the edge when Opacho, [[spoiler: his last and closest companion, runs away from him in fear.]]* VillainousCrossdresser: "Princess Hao", anyone?* WalkingShirtlessScene: Yoh. Curiously, none of the Patch tribe.** Let us not forget that classic "Mikihisa in a ''really'' small towel" scene. Not to mention Ren in the brief period after he [[spoiler:gets killed by Peyote's Over Soul, Grande Fantasma]]. Damn, all the main male characters take a freaking ''bath'' together! And the main male cast usually take a ''lot'' of baths, with different sets of main characters, depending on how far along the story you are.* WhamEpisode: Chapter 161: [[spoiler:Ren is dead, and Yoh has gotten Manta to bring the X-LAWS to revive him. Marco tells Yoh that they will revive him, on one condition. Yoh has to resign from the Shaman Fight. So Yoh does what any Shounen protagonist would do and abandons his Oracle Pager, signifying his resignation from the tournament]]. Even [[spoiler:''Marco'']] is astonished and appalled by this.* WhatTheHellHero?: Everything Yoh does always gives these types of reactions but what could probably be the worst is that [[spoiler:he takes coffee with the big bad, Hao! Most of his friends react horribly to this.]]* WorthyOpponent* WoodenKatanasAreEvenBetter: Wooden Sword Ryu wields, well, a wooden sword. Against people who metal swords, halberd and the like. But when he awakens to his shamanic powers, that wooden sword becomes as awesome as any other shamanic focus.* YouGottaHaveBlueHair: Horohoro/Trey* YouKilledMyFather: Redseb wanted to kill Chocolove because he murdered his father. [[spoiler: And he succeeded. Not to worry, [[BackFromTheDead he got better.]]]]** Lyserg wants to kill Hao for murdering both his mother and father.----